Kansas Jayhawks
2016 End of Year Report
I think that it can be said at this point that the first
two years of the David Beaty era have not exactly taken off like a rocket. Other
than a conference win over Texas (Beaty is now just 1-17 in Big 12 play),
Kansas is not demonstrating nearly enough to make me into a buyer that this
program is making many strides. Texas was under a ton of turbulence the week it
played Kansas, and had the game been played a couple of weeks earlier, I see no
way they win that game. Overall, this had to be another huge disappointment for
Kansas football fans.
Quarterbacks
As a unit, this group tossed more INTs than TDs this
season, with just 16 TDs being thrown to 22 being picked off. This is awful,
and is a strong reason why the Jayhawks averaged just a shade over 20 points
per game. Montell Cozart was back, but played in just 8 games, passing for 1075
yards with 7 TDs and 9 INTs. He averaged just 134 yards passing per game,
completing 58.6% of his passes, which is fairly pedestrian. Carter Stanley, a
freshman, played in 9 games, which was one more than Cozart. He passed for 959
yards while tossing 6 TDs to 6 picks. Stanley was slightly more accurate,
completing 59.6% of his throws, but only averaged 106.6 yards passing per game.
Sophomore Ryan Willis also played in 7 games, passing for 811 yards, but he
tossed just 3 TDs to 7 picks. Willis was the most accurate of the group at just
over 61% completion rate. In short, there was no star to be found here.
Grade: F
Running Backs
The leader of the unit was senior Ke’aun Kinner, who
rushed for just 738 yards on the season, averaging just 61.5 yards per game.
Kinner scored just three times, but did average an impressive 5.27 yards per
carry. Had Kansas given him the football more often, they could have slowed
some tempos down, and taken advantage of his playmaking ability. Taylor Martin,
a sophomore, ran for just 324 yards on the season, and may be the leader for
the starting job next fall barring recruiting efforts. Khalil Herbert and
Denzel l Evans combined to carry the ball just 61 times combined in backup
roles, so nothing much can be gleaned from that.
Grade: D
Receivers
There were two solid performers worth talking about here.
Steven Sims , Junior and LaQuvionte Gonzalez were both breakouts this fall.
Sims caught 72 passes for 859 yards, while Gonzalez picked up 62 grabs for 729
yards. They combined for 10 scores, which leads me to believe if any QB had
developed, this could have been a dangerous group. Shakiem Barbel caught 34
passes, but nobody else caught 20 balls or more. The excellent news is that 8
Jayhawks wide receivers who caught passes this season will return in 2017,
which will be awesome if Beaty can find a QB who can get the ball to this group
on any reliable basis.
Grade: B
Defensive Line
There is some very real, if not young, talent on this
Kansas D Line. Sophomore Dorance Armstrong, Junior recorded 20 TFLs on the
season for Kansas, and fellow soph Daniel Wise recorded 10. This is an attacking
unit that gets after the football off the edges. Cameron Rosser and Damani
Moseby combined for 14 more TFLs, while a total of 8 other Jayhawks on the line
recorded TFLs as well. Armstrong was the team leader in sacks with 10 this
season, so this group should be featured next fall. The bad news is that with
the offense failing as it did, this unit was on the field too much, and got
worn down to the point that they allowed 236.4 yards rushing per game last
season. That being said, this unit played as well, or more, as could be
expected under the circumstances.
Grade: A-
Linebackers
This unit was not very productive in 2016, and may have
been the core reason that the run yards against the defense were so high.
Senior LB Courtney Arnick was the leading tackler in the LB group with just 66,
a substantially low number for a Power Five unit. Keith Loneker, Junior, was
second among LBs with just 43. Arnick and Marcquis Roberts also only combined
for 13.5 TFLs, so LBs were not getting much rush off the edge to stop plays
before they began, also indicative of giving up big numbers against the run. Depth,
Experience, and productivity may be tough to come by in 2016, especially with
Arnick and Roberts both being seniors, and the rest of the unit not being very
productive behind them this fall.
Grade: D
Defensive Backs
Marnez Ogletree led the team with 8 pass breakups this
fall, while Fred Smithson broke up 7 passes. Tevin Shaw and Brandon Stewart
broke up a combined 10 after that. The major issue is that all were seniors, so
this group has to be rebuilt next season. Smithson also picked off 4 passes to
lead the secondary, and the Jayhawks only combined to pick off 10 passes all
season. By comparison, the Jayhawks threw 22 INTs all season, or a 2:1
difference in the negative.
Grade: D
Special Teams
Senior Matthew Wyman was a bit of a mess this season,
hitting on only 13/19 FG tries on the year. He did manage to hit all 26 of his
PATs. He will have to be replaced next fall, and things can only get
better. Cole Moos was dependable at
Punter, averaging 41.4 yards per punt on 6.1 punts per game. Gonzalez was the
primary kick return man, returning 28 kickoffs and averaging an average number
of 21.46 yards per return, which was hardly stellar. The Jayhawks punt return
game was pure trash this season, as they returned just 7 punts all season long.
Grade: D-
2016 Successes
The receivers, despite having virtually no dependable QB
on the roster, had some solid gains this season, and the defensive line was a
beats at times that just got worn out from over use in games.
2016 Failures
The QB situation is a mess, with nobody really stepping
up to take control. The run game was underutilized, and never gave the passing
game time to develop as a result.
LBs were underproductive as any unit in the nation, and
the secondary did not force nearly enough turnovers.
Other than Moos at Punter, Special Teams are a disaster.
2017
Non-Conference Opponents: SE Missouri, Central Michigan, Ohio
Kansas is going the Bill Snyder route with a cup cake non
con schedule that sets up for success. CMU and Ohio are likely bowl teams, but
are both teams Kansas should be able to run with next fall, and SE Missouri is
an FCS bottom feeder from the Ohio Valley Conference. Kansas should have at
least an even shot at winning all three. Conference play may be a different
matter.
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